Gabrielle Aplin
Gabrielle Aplin (born 10 October 1992) is an English singer-songwriter.2 Aplin came to public attention after she gained a large online following by posting acoustic covers of songs on her YouTube channel. In February 2012, Aplin signed a recording deal with Parlophone and began recording her début album. She gained mainstream attention the following November, when she was selected to record the soundtrack for a John Lewis television commercial with a cover of Frankie Goes to Hollywood's "The Power of Love", which charted at number 1 on the UK Singles Chart in December 2012.3 Her début album English Rain, was released in May 2013 to positive reviews. It debuted and peaked at number two on the UK album chart and led to several more singles: "Please Don't Say You Love Me", "Panic Cord", "Home" and "Salvation". English Rain has since been certified Gold in the UK, selling over 100,000 copies. Aplin's second album, Light Up The Dark, featuring the singles "Light Up The Dark" and "Sweet Nothing", was released on 18 September 2015.4 Contents Biography Edit Early life and career beginnings (1992–2010) Edit Aplin grew up in the small village of Sutton Benger,2 near Chippenham. She is the oldest of two children. When she was 11 years old, her parents bought her first guitar.5 Aplin has stated that her music was influenced by listening to the Joni Mitchell and Bruce Springsteen collections of her parents during her childhood.6 She is also a fan of the singer-songwriters Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, as well as the rock band The National.5 Aplin went on to study music at the City of Bath College,2 participating in the college's in-house label BA1 Records.7 Aplin's first release was the 5-track Acoustic EP, which she self-released on her own label Never Fade Records on 13 September 2010. It reached the top 25 in the UK iTunes album chart. Never Fade, Home, and BBC Introducing (2011–12) Edit Aplin's second EP, Never Fade, was released on 9 May 2011. In this EP, she expanded her sound, showcasing a more folk rock sound and playing all the instruments herself.8 In April 2011, Aplin was invited to perform for BBC Introducing at Maida Vale Studios, where she played 3 tracks from Never Fade and a cover of the Coldplay song, "Fix You",2 which is currently the most viewed video on the BBC Introducing YouTube channel.9 Aplin released her third EP, Home, on 9 January 2012, again on Never Fade Records.10 She described this release as "the most honest thing I've ever written and recorded."11 The lead track "Home" was featured on the iTunes Store as "single of the week" and was also Aplin's first track to be played on BBC Radio 1. English Rain (2012–2014) Edit Main article: English Rain On 29 February 2012, Aplin announced that she had signed a deal with Parlophone Records.12 Her first major label single "Please Don't Say You Love Me" was set for release on 10 February 2013.1314 Later that year, Aplin was confirmed as the soundtrack to the John Lewis 2012 Christmas television advertisement, covering Frankie Goes to Hollywood's "The Power of Love".15 In an interview, she said, "I was worried people might hate me because they were so attached to the original single. But I've since been in touch with Holly Johnson, and he said some lovely things about my take on his song."6 On 12 December 2012, Aplin announced that the title of her début album would be English Rain. The album's release date was later confirmed as 13 May 2013.16 On its release, English Rain charted at number two on both the UK album charts, selling over 35,000 copies. It reached number 11 in Ireland, number 10 in Australia, and number 39 in New Zealand.17 English Rain went on to gain international success and gave Aplin two Australian number ones. In 2013, Aplin announced that her record label, Never Fade Records which was originally launched in 2010 so that Aplin could release her own music, would now represent other musicians. Her first signings were Welsh folk-jazz singer Hannah Grace, who had previously supported Aplin on tour, and indie folk artist Saint Raymond.18 Never Fade Records' first release since Aplin's own Home EP in January 2012, was Saint Raymond's Escapade EP, released on 22 April 2013. Saint Raymond has since been released from Never Fade Records to allow him to sign a deal with Asylum, part of the Atlantic Records group.19 In 2014, Aplin released her English Rain EP in the United States. This EP was released on 6 May and features five songs from her début album, as well as a cover of Canadian singer Joni Mitchell's A Case of You.20 Light Up the Dark (2015–present) Edit Main article: Light Up the Dark In May 2015, Aplin announced her second studio album, Light Up the Dark. The album announcement also featured the release of the title track's music video.21 The video for the second single from Light Up the Dark, "Sweet Nothing", was released on 6 August 2015. Aplin has appeared in fashion spreads for magazines such as Vogue and GQ. In September 2015, it was revealed that she had signed a modelling deal with Select modelling agency, although she stated in an interview, "It’s not like I want to go and be a model or anything. They’ll only ever book me to do something that reflects me and fits my music."22 On September 22 2015 Aplin appeared on BBC Radio 1's Innuendo Bingo.23 Discography Edit Main article: Gabrielle Aplin discography English Rain (2013) Light Up the Dark (2015) Television and Film Edit Her version of the song "The Power of Love" was featured in an episode of Reign. Her song "Start of Time" was featured in "Alpha Pact", episode 11 of season 3 of MTV's Teen Wolf. Her song "Salvation" was featured in an advertisement for the sixth season of X Factor Australia. Salvation also featured in the first full length trailer for the 5th Series of British television drama Downton Abbey as well as the individual episode advertisements on ITV. Her song "Through the Ages" was featured in the 2014 "Kuroshitsuji" live action film in Japan. Her song "Salvation" was featured in "Yellow Ledbetter", the second episode of season 6 of The CW's The Vampire Diaries. Her version of the song "The Power of Love" was also featured in "Black Hole Sun", the fourth episode of season 6 of The CW's The Vampire Diaries. Her version of the song "The Power of Love" was featured in the advert/trailer for TV series "Resurrection". Her song "Alive" was featured in "Stay", episode 14 of season 6 of The CW's The Vampire Diaries. Her song "Salvation" was featured in the trailer for Age of Adaline. Her song "Salvation" was featured in the English language trailer for The Little Prince. Her song "Home" was featured in the trailer for Brooklyn. Her song "Home" was featured in the soundtrack of Brazilian telenovela Totalmente Demais. Her song "Home" was featured in an episode of Wentworth (TV series).